

UPDATE: Ultimate Ears has confirmed that the UE Boom will now ship with a “protective cap to cover both ports”, restoring its water resistance credibility.

Wet grass is no friend to the UE Boom, and the park seems like a perfect place for a wireless speaker like this, too. They are completely exposed, and in real-life use where is water highly-like to be a problem? That’s right, on the ground. On the underside of the UE Boom are a microUSB port used to charge the internal battery and a 3.5mm aux input. There is a serious problem with its approach to waterproofing, though. Droplets simply cascade off it rather than being absorbed, so you can run the UE Boom under a tap and it won’t die. The UE Boom’s top and bottom are rubberised, and the speaker grille is tough woven fabric that’s waterproof. Aside from its dazzling array of colours, its styling has a light, low-key touch.
UE BOOM SPEAKER WATERPROOF PORTABLE
The UE Boom is also one of the better-looking portable Bluetooth speakers. Unlike some other portable speakers of this size, such as the Philips Shoqbox, it’s designed to stand upright, rather than on its side. With a design based on a bottle of water, the Ultimate Ears UE Boom is small enough to grip in one hand and has a teeny footprint. Ultimate Ears UE Boom – Design and Features It’s a lovely little speaker, but expensive at £170. The Ultimate Ears UE Boom Bluetooth speaker is one of the best you can get at this size, but the whole market is afflicted by sky–high pricing. Tykes who used to annoy people by playing tunes on their mobile phones on the bus have apparently grown up into adults who like the idea of a wireless portable speaker to crank tunes out of. Join Esquire Select.One of the few areas in audio tech to have grown over the last few years is the Bluetooth speaker. Keep track of the latest and greatest tech that deserves a place in your home. These are the best waterproof (or water-resistant) Bluetooth speakers to pair and play through 2021-whether you're looking for pristine audio, killer bass, or something that's cheap and rugged. You'll want to take note of size as well, since the speaker you bring to the campsite or set up on the back patio will assuredly be a different size than the one you keep in the shower or haul to the tailgate. Then there are additional features to keep in mind, like smart assistant integration, charging ports, portability accessories, durability, and, on a fun note, looks. But it's safe to say that the more you're willing to pay for a speaker, the more impressive the audio. In terms of audio quality, Bluetooth speakers will give you more decibels than the speaker on your smartphone, and most will sound significantly better. Since a lot of waterproof speakers are built to float, it likely won't come to a half-hour dunking, but you can't beat the peace of mind. Īll but two of the speakers on this list have a waterproof rating of seven (or higher), which means you can submerge them in up to one meter of water for 30 minutes.

you can't drop it in the pool, but a few splashes won't kill it-but has not been tested and rated for dust protection. For instance, the rating IPX4 means the speaker is water-resistant-a.k.a. If you come across a rating that held onto one of its X's, it means its manufacturer didn't have it tested and rated in that category you'll just have to trust what the manufacturer says. Take the rating IP67: To you, that means the speaker has the best protection against dust (six) and the near-best protection against water (seven). The second X will be a number between zero and eight that rates the speaker's ability to protect against liquids, like, you guessed it, water. The first X will be a number between zero and six that rates the speaker's ability to protect against solids, like dust and dirt. Most Bluetooth speakers come with a rating system formatted like "IPXX" to indicate just how strong that speaker is against the elements. Of those, there are many.īut first, hold tight for some rather dry, owner's-manual speak to help make sense of what's waterproof, what's water-resistant, and what would melt under a splash from the faucet, wicked witch-style, in the Bluetooth speaker realm. If 2021 has a soundtrack, its theme could be described as "wild abandonment." So we need portable speakers that are "wild abandonment"-proof. We're pregaming and picnicking and partying, drowning out mopey thoughts-or at least trying to-with any song that's over 110 beats per minute. We're funneling the viral hits straight into our ears, hoping that endorphin rush will get us through another workday. Now, we're cranking the vibiest of playlists way the hell up. For what felt like an interminably long time there, a hush had fallen over life. Damn does it feel good to get loud again.
